Chapter 262 Counterattack VII

On September 8, 1939, all of Europe held its breath and watched how the Netherlands, a small country that was rich but not strong, would choose. This was a rather difficult choice. If the Netherlands joined the British and French side, it would immediately be bombed by Germany. It was not that Emperor William did not remember the old friendship, but that the main force of the German army was now on the Eastern Front and could only rely on bombing the roads and railways in the Netherlands to stop the powerful French army from advancing.

If the Netherlands joined the German side, it would immediately be occupied by the British and French coalition forces. After that, the land of the Netherlands is likely to become the main battlefield for the British, French and German forces to fight, just like Belgium in World War I!

In comparison, it seems that the loss of joining the British and French side is smaller - if Britain and France can really "win".

Of course, the Dutch government did not need to make a decision on September 8, because it would take a lot of time for hundreds of thousands of British and French coalition forces to prepare for the march. The Netherlands' premature declaration of war on Germany was not conducive to the military operations of Britain and France.

However, at this time, no one in Britain, France or the Netherlands thought that a small Eastern European city called Lviv would become a key point in changing the course of the war within a few days.

At this time, Major General Theodore von Hipper and Colonel von Stockhausen, who were at the Lviv Airport, did not expect that the Lviv airborne operation would eventually affect the entire war situation. They did not even have time to consider the overall situation because they encountered trouble outside the city of Lviv.

The Lviv airport is in the southwest of the city, not too far from the urban area. Because there is no air force, the Ukrainian Defense Force stationed in Lviv does not attach importance to the airport. No heavy troops were deployed here, resulting in the German army's sneak attack.

After capturing the Lviv Airport, the "Miuta Cluster" quickly completed the deployment and deployment, and occupied part of the woodland around the airport-at this time, there were large tracts of forest around Lviv, and the original site of the Lviv Airport was a forest. The Ukrainians actually cut down an airport and the road in and out of the airport. Such terrain is very beneficial for the "Miuta Cluster" with only light equipment.

They cut down a lot of trees on both sides of the two roads leading to Lviv in the northeast and north of the airport, blocked the roads with them, buried mines, and built a lot of firepower points on both sides of the roads.

As soon as the deployment was completed, the Ukrainian Defense Force sent a large number of infantry and horse-drawn artillery from Lviv to counterattack and retake the airport. But how could these amateur Ukrainians be opponents of the Wehrmacht's elite? They were quickly defeated, leaving behind several old-fashioned "Miss 75" and fleeing back to Lviv, and the Germans captured many prisoners.

However, the result of the interrogation of the prisoners surprised Hipple and Stockhausen-Lviv, the capital of the Ukrainian Free State, is now armed to the point where everyone is a soldier! Almost all adult males have taken up arms, either in the regular army or in the guerrillas.

Moreover, all coal mines, iron mines, oil fields, factories, railways and bridges in the Lviv area have been equipped with explosives, ready to be blown up at any time when the enemy invades!

Yes, the Ukrainians are going to fight! They are ready for a scorched earth war. Even if most of the Ukrainian Free State, including Lviv and Right Bank Ukraine, fell, the government of the Ukrainian Free State would never surrender. They would move to the Carpathian Mountains, where Poland obtained the Carpathian Ukraine region when it divided Czechoslovakia, for the final resistance!

It seems that the Germans' idea of ​​getting a complete Lviv has completely failed! And the "Miuta Cluster" that has gone deep into the enemy's territory alone will soon face a bloody battle!

...

"Not Russians, they are not Russians, thank God, they are Germans!"

In the center of Lviv, in the basement of the Prime Minister's Office of the Ukrainian Free State, Prime Minister Petliura and several ministers who were also in military uniforms breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

The Germans are finally here!

The German invaders are finally here!

Several Ukrainian bigwigs thought so in their hearts.

At this moment, the invasion of the German army is undoubtedly a great thing for the rulers and people of the Polish Ukrainian Free State, and many lives will be saved!

Of course, these bigwigs also have eyes and ears in the Polish government. They have long known that the Soviet Union has asked the Polish Federation to dissolve. This does not mean that the Ukrainian people can gain independence and freedom from now on, but that the Soviet Red Army can invade without scruples.

Moreover, the Soviet Union has already found out that it has assembled a large number of troops on the east bank of the Dnieper River and in Eastern Belarus. The Soviet Red Army may launch an attack at any time!

And no matter how well armed the Ukrainian Free State is, it is impossible to defeat them.

All the people in this basement and their families will definitely be shot after the Soviet Union occupies Ukraine. Even if they surrender to the Bolsheviks sincerely, they can only live a few more days at most.

Because of the hatred between Ukrainians and Russians during the Soviet-Russian Civil War, the "extermination famine" suffered by the left-bank Ukraine during the three difficult years of the Soviet Union, and the Soviet Great Purge against the left-bank Ukrainians, every right-bank Ukrainian and western Ukrainian with a little property and social status has no illusions about being ruled by the Soviet Union.

If God forced Ukrainians to choose between becoming Soviets and becoming Germans, then there is no doubt that 90% of "free Ukrainians" would like to become Germans. In the Lviv area, which was originally part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the proportion of Ukrainians willing to become Germans is definitely 100% - Ukrainians in Lviv (most of the Ukrainians in Lviv moved from Ukrainian cities around the Dnieper River and were very afraid of the Soviet Union. In the eyes of the large number of Jews in the city, Germany's anti-Semitism policy was much milder than that of Poland and the Soviet Union) are choosing between starving to death, being shot, and speaking German.

"Now it is basically certain that it was the Germans who occupied the airport," Petliura said with a smile, "The Polish government in Lublin has confirmed through Britain that the Soviet Union has not yet joined the war, and the people who ran back from the airport have also confirmed this. So, everyone, what should we do now?"

"Negotiate, we should negotiate with Germany alone." Someone immediately suggested, "The war between the Germans and Poles has nothing to do with us, we can become friends with Germany... I think this is what we should strive for first."

Obviously, this person does not want to give up the opportunity to fight for independence.

"This won't work," someone immediately objected, "If we really become independent, the Soviet Union will invade. Who will protect Ukraine then?"

"We can become allies of Germany."

"Will the Germans go to war with the Soviet Union for Ukraine?"

This is obviously unrealistic. If Britain and France had not declared war on Germany, Germany might have considered protecting the entire Free State of Ukraine.

"But who else can we Ukrainians rely on besides Germany? Will Britain help us? Can Poland still be counted on?"

Stepan Bandera, who was regarded as a confidant by Petliura, stood up and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, an independent Ukraine has always been the goal pursued by us. But what is the basis for pursuing Ukraine's independence? It is the Ukrainians! It is the more than 20 million Ukrainian people living on the west and east banks of the Dnieper River!

First save the people, then there is hope for independence. So our goal now is not independence with the support of Germany, but more to save the blood of Ukraine!"

Without people, how can there be independence?

Due to the misunderstandings of the past 20 years, most people in the Free State of Ukraine now believe that the Soviet Union wants to exterminate Ukrainians. Either they will be shot or starved to death, and even if they join the Bolshevik Party, they will not be able to save their lives.

"So what should we do?" Petliura looked at Bandera and asked.

"We can join the German Empire conditionally!" Bandera gritted his teeth and said, "For the survival of the Ukrainian nation, this is the only way. Only by becoming a state under the German Empire can we stop the invasion of the Soviet Union."

"Will Germany accept Ukraine at the risk of going to war with the Soviet Union?"

"Not completely," Bandera said, "If the Germans don't want it at all, then why do they come here? Since they are here, they are attracted by Ukraine's resources. Lviv has oil, coal mines, iron mines, and ready-made steel mills, which are all what the Germans want. In addition, Western Ukraine also has fertile black soil, which are all our bargaining chips!"

"Bargain?"

Bandera nodded, "And we still have hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian defense forces, and the defense forces can still fight! If the Germans want to get more Ukrainian territory, then they need our cooperation. As a condition, they must help us protect more Ukrainians."

In other words, Germany can divide the Ukrainian Free State with the Soviet Union-this is inevitable, but at the same time Germany has an obligation to protect most Ukrainians.

With the cooperation of the Ukrainian Free State government, the Germans will definitely get more territory in the process of dividing the Ukrainian Free State.

All eyes are on Petliura, who is now the "Pilsudski" of Ukraine.

"Okay, let's do it!" Petliura shrugged, "If we surrender to the Soviet Union, the entire nation will disappear (actually it won't). If we surrender to Germany, then we can at least keep the vitality of the nation, and there will always be an independent day in the future!" He looked at Bandera, "Stepan, I appoint you as the plenipotentiary representative to negotiate with the Germans who occupied the airport... negotiate surrender!"

This is simply an international joke!

The Ukrainian Free State, with a population of more than 10 million, more than 300,000 square kilometers of land, and hundreds of thousands of armed troops, actually surrendered to thousands of Germans who parachuted into the Lviv airport!

And they surrendered with the most joyful and saved mood. The German soldiers stationed at the airport did not wait for the second attack of the Ukrainians. What they waited for were many Ukrainian girls holding salt and bread...

Then, the whole of Europe was dumbfounded.